Sourav Ganguly discussed Rishabh Pant’s batting performance against Australia in 2024-25.
Pant is a “very good” player, according to the former Indian captain, but he needs to play “a few years ago”. Ganguly criticised the southpaw’s performance in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, which India lost 3-1 away from home.
Sourav Ganguly believed Pant made too many unnecessary shots and continued to swing his bat without applying himself. The former Indian batsman felt the ball seamed in Australia, and Pant had to be aware of it. He stated his desire to see Pant perform better in England and urged him to put up “more fight” in the next five-match series.
“He’s an excellent player, but he needs to keep playing the way he did a few years ago. I saw him in Australia and did not like what I saw. Too many shots. He continued swinging. The ball was decked out at some places. He has the skill, without a question, but it is all about the application. I’d want to see more fighting from him. He has a really good defence. So he needs to defend and swing at every ball,” said Ganguly.
We won in Melbourne without Kohli or Rohit: Sourav Ganguly
When asked about India’s chances in the series, given that the last time a visiting team won a Test series in England was in 2007, Ganguly believes that Indian batters stepping up to the occasion and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah staying will be the two most important factors in helping India break that record. He also mentioned that India won the Melbourne Test in 2020 without Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, demonstrating that the team has the potential to compete even in the absence of experienced players.
“Yes, certainly. We only need two things: to bat well and to keep [Jasprit] Bumrah fit. We won in Australia, in Melbourne (2020-21), with a youthful batting lineup that had no [Virat] Kohli or Rohit Sharma. So, I don’t see why we can’t win,” Ganguly explained.
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